“I advised the gamers,” Walid Regragui mentioned after his first defeat as Morocco’s head coach on the 2022 World Cup semi-final, “I used to be pleased with them, his majesty is proud, the Moroccan individuals are proud, the entire world is proud.”
It’s maybe no exaggeration to imagine that a lot extra across the globe apart from the 68,000-plus assembled on the Al Bayt Stadium on Wednesday evening gave a quiet applause for the Atlas Lions. For even within the 2-0 defeat to defending champions France, the standard Moroccan spirit of this Qatar World Cup had been something however misplaced.
Between the Fifth-minute opener and the 79th-minute second French strike that shut the door on them, Morocco regarded the mighty Les Bleus within the eye and threatened to grab the early lead from their sight. They’d extra possession and only one fewer try on purpose to France’s 14. They’d some resolute French defence and the bar deny them a purpose that gave the impression to be coming in direction of the tip of the primary half and for a lot of the second. They’d, within the truest sense of that cliched time period, given it their all on the market.
What else explains their heavily-strapped captain Romain Saiss soldiering on for 20 minutes after beginning regardless of being visibly hampered by the hamstring harm. Or the staff holding on to its personal even after shedding its key defender in Nayef Aguerd moments earlier than kickoff. Or a number of French gamers breaking away from their celebrations after the whistle to elevate the dejected Morrocan gamers slumped to the grass. Or Morocco’s gamers acknowledging the wave of pink and inexperienced throughout the stadium—cheering for their very own all night and decreased to tears by the tip—lengthy after the feelings had settled and the French had left.
If not for the gradual begin and a few moments of particular person brilliance from Theo Hernandez and Kylian Mbappe in that second purpose help, Morocco might have had one thing extra to point out than the 2-0 scoreline from a stage that they had by no means been to earlier than. But from the Arab World Cup the place they turned the primary African nation to succeed in the semi-finals whereas uniting the folks of each areas in satisfaction, that they had a lot to point out.
“My gamers gave the whole lot, they usually went so far as they may,” Regragui mentioned. “I actually needed to rewrite the historical past books, however you may’t win a World Cup with miracles. You want to do it by means of onerous work.”
Morocco’s World Cup journey during the last three weeks went from shock in matching the 2018 version finalists and beating the semi-finalists within the group stage, to fairytale in making the final eight by knocking out a powerhouse, to perception of going all the way in which after the quarter-final. In beating Belgium and Canada after a stalemate with Croatia, Spain within the Spherical of 16 and Portugal within the final eight, the Morocco World Cup success story is not like many underdog tales of the previous.
“Forty million followers had been behind them,” Ahmed Jahouh, Mumbai Metropolis FC’s Moroccan midfielder who was a part of his nationwide staff’s 2012 Arab Nations Cup triumph, mentioned in a chat. “They deserve it. We had been hoping to only get into the second spherical, nevertheless it quickly modified to, ‘perhaps we are able to win the World Cup’. It’s good to see the Moroccan staff rising like that. I nonetheless can’t imagine it. However it is a superb Morocco staff with an excellent coach.”
That coach, appointed three months earlier than the World Cup, was on the coronary heart of the transformation and run of this group. No surprise Regragui too walked together with his head held excessive after the loss. “We performed sincere, hard-working soccer,” Regragui mentioned. “I feel we’ve given picture of Morocco and picture of African soccer.”
That picture of Morocco’s gamers combating for each ball, placing their our bodies on the road, dancing with their moms after matches, and scripting one well-known victory after one other to earn their place within the historical past books will without end be etched in our recollections of this World Cup.
“I’m proud to be Moroccan and to signify this nation in India,” Jahouh, taking part in within the ongoing Indian Tremendous League, mentioned. “Now, many individuals learn about Morocco and soccer in Morocco.”